Attendance ban to be imposed on fans for misconduct at stadiums

For misconduct, spectators will be fined 3,000 to 10,000 roubles or will be brought to public work

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MOSCOW, June 21 (Itar-Tass) - The State Duma submitted a draft law on fans to a vote at the second reading on Friday.

The law calls for imposing serious fines for violations of public order at stadiums and a ban from match attending for up to seven years.

Competition organizers together with owners and sport facility users will be responsible for public order and security at competitions in accordance with the regulations to be approved by the Russian government. Controllers may be taken on the contract basis to see that order is kept at stadiums.

The cabinet is also expected to work out regulations for spectators.

The Russian Interior Ministry will draw up a list of those who will be banned from attending competitions. The ticket cost will not be returned to expelled fans. Those who will be present on the stands despite the ban will be fined 20,000-25,000 rbls or arrested for up to 15 days.

For misconduct, spectators will be fined 3,000 to 10,000 roubles or will be brought to public work for up to 160 hours with the ban from attending official competitions for a period from six months to three years. A judge will decide whether to impose the ban on an offender or not, the head of the Duma committee for sport and youth affairs, Igor Ananskikh (LDPR) told Itar-Tass.

In case misconduct stops competitions, a 10,000-15,000-rbl fine will be imposed. An alternative to a fine is 15-day arrest with the attendance ban for six month to seven years or without the ban. Besides, 50,000 to 100,000-rbl fine sanctions are suggested for officials and 100,000-300,000 for legal entities or administrative suspension of activities for up to 90 days.

If harm is done to health or property (if it is not a criminal case) as a result of misconduct, 100,000-200,000-rbl fines will be imposed on officials, 300,000-500,000-rbl fines on legal entities or activity suspension for up to 90 days.

Video cameras will be installed at stadiums, but the Ministry of Sport and Tourism will decide for what sports camera equipment will be obligatory, Ananskikh said.

The law is needed at present, Duma committee member and president of the International Sambo Federation Vasily Shestakov (United Russia) said. He noted that misconduct actions at stadiums were reported not only in Russia, but also all over the world. There are attempts to solve the problem in various ways. “We go the way of Great Britain, France and Spain, where long-period bans are successfully used for offenders not to attend competitions,” the legislator said. He hopes that when the law cames into force, offenders who like to throw petards or set fire to seats will seriously think about it, otherwise next time they will sit only at a TV set to watch their favourite team’s matches.

Legislators discussed the draft law in detail with sport officials, heads of teams of various sports and with fans. They express gratitude for the committee’s addressing the problem. Offenders on the stands discredit the movement of fans on the whole, Shestakov noted.

Many have heard about scandals at football matches. But violations also happen at other competitions, for example, wrestling. Matches are unpredictable in the sport. Some fans cannot control themselves, the legislator added.

The law if it is adopted is expected to come into force in six months after the official publication.

The vote on the draft law will be held after 17:00 Moscow time this Friday.